002: The Red Rose
by qwaszxedc9
Summary: (COMPLETE) A 'what-if' ficlet. Jessie grew up with Team Rocket. It was the only place she had ever known, ever since her mother brought her to the Madame, and then disappeared. She became 002: the Red Rose, the most successful solo assassin in Team Rocket. Then, she met James. AU. Plot bunny. Possibly two-shot. Slightly graphic violence. Slight OOC


**Yo! Qwaszxedc9 here! XD**

 **For some reason, I decided to write a Pokemon fanfic. What am I doing?**

 **I've only ever watched part of the anime, so forgive me if there are any inconsistencies with canon. This kinda wrote itself after watching Team Rocket fail mission after mission and blasting off again and again. Honestly, how are they not fired yet? They managed to get enough resources to build robots and restock their balloons, but barely show results. Then, this plot bunny appeared.**

 **ENJOY!**

* * *

 **002: The Red Rose**

 **What if:**

 **Jessie grew up with Team Rocket. It was the only place she had ever known, ever since her mother brought her to the Madame, and then disappeared. She became 002: the Red Rose, the most successful solo assassin in Team Rocket. Then, she met James.**

 **Chapter 1**

* * *

Jessie grew up with Team Rocket.

It was the only place she had ever known, ever since her mother brought her to the Madame, and then disappeared.

They trained her, turned her from a little girl into a top notched assassin. She was taught to separate her emotions from work, to be swift and ruthless.

She became 002: the Red Rose, the Solo Assassin.

* * *

When in headquarters, she wore a mask covering her eyes and nose, and wigs to cover up her hair. Only the boss knew her true face and her natural red hair.

It wouldn't do for an assassin to be well-known.

Her mask, though, was red and glaring, obvious to those who see it.

The grunts in headquarters knew better than to cross her path, scurrying out of the way whenever she came by. They knew her as The Assassin, The Red Rose, the most successful assassin in Team Rocket with a near perfect record.

She was also known for kicking those in her way through the wall.

* * *

One day, she was eating in the canteen, alone at the table when her elbow bumped into her glass of drink.

"You almost dropped this. I caught it!"

She glanced at the person beside her table, who had coincidentally walked by and snatched up her drink before it spilled over. He had blue hair and a smile.

And a red jumpsuit. A rookie. Fairly new if he didn't know better than to walk by her table.

She stood up, leaning back on her left leg to slam the rookie into the wall.

"Here, some of it spilled onto my hand, so I'll have to wash it off." He said, after placing the cup on her table, not looking at her but examining his palm. She paused. He didn't seem to realise his mistake. How laughable.

Then he turned and grinned at her, almost a smirk.

"Nice meeting you!"

She felt her heart jump a beat, her weight no longer on one leg. He turned and jogged away, toward the toilets.

It was a first smile she'd seen in a while directed at her, apart from the boss'.

Her heart skipped another beat.

* * *

An hour later, she had obtained every last bit of information on him from the Rocket database. From his name to his birthday down to his underwear size.

James.

Strangely, it sounded nice on her tongue.

* * *

She even disguised herself as one of the other male recruits, in order to talk to him. Though, she didn't quite understand why she'd been asking such strange, useless questions.

"-so, why kind of girl do you like? I would really want a pretty and meek girl as a wife." She said in a deep voice, sighing as she smiled.

"Really, Cavin? I thought you wanted a strong and supportive wife." James said, staring at her wide eyed. She waved her hand quickly, her face suddenly heating up.

"No, not about me, what kind of girl do you like? What's your type?" She asked, gesturing in a 'come-on' motion. James stared dreamily into thin air.

"Well, I want a strong, independent woman, feisty and hot. Would be good if she had red hair - I always liked that colour of hair. It would complement my own blue hair." He said, smiling.

She felt her heartbeat suddenly race, her cheeks hot under her disguise. Her hair was naturally red! She slapped her forehead, turning backward and gasping as if 'Cavin' had forgotten something.

"Oh wait, I gotta meet the trainer about something I forgot, see ya!"

* * *

Her little distraction didn't really go unnoticed.

"So, the new recruit, James..." Giovanni started. She didn't react, but her glance was enough to tell him that she was indeed interested in this new recruit, if the fact she reacted to his name was anything.

"Sir...?"

"You've been spending much of your free time between missions stalking the recruits' training field."

"... Yes." She saw no reason to lie. Giovanni sighed, rubbing his forehead. The Persian at his side purred.

"You have also used much of your available intelligence resources to dig into his past." He sighed, looking up. "Are you interested in him?"

"... My head has been filled with countless thoughts of him." She said, standing in front of the boss.

"Do you know why?" Giovanni asked, his lips twitching.

She frowned. "Perhaps I wish to assassinate him for his slight a couple of months ago."

Giovanni snorted. "Not quite, my Red Rose."

"I been having the urge to find every last bit of information available on him. Is that not a target?" She pulled her mask off, rubbing her cheek. "For some reason I haven't been planning out his possible assassination. It is incompetence, and for that I apologise."

Giovanni smiled, leaning back and rubbing his Persian's head. "It is love."

"... Love?"

"Well, you're 17 years old, and that is a perfect time for a girl to fall in love."

"I've never done that before."

"That's why it's a first love."

"... I shall research on love, then. Will that be all, sir?"

"Oh, I'll be entering you into the recruits' training."

"The recruits' training? Would that be my permanent cover?"

"Yes, publicly you will be the leader of Team Rocket's Red Team, but you'll still take assassination jobs on the side whenever I need you to. Assassination jobs only come every few months, and you'll do better helping out in the field during that spare time, rather than spending your time scaring my grunts."

"... Understood."

* * *

She was eventually partnered with James. Taking on a hot-tempered, confident personality, she was frigid when she first met James face-to-face, and bitchy when a girl named Cassidy kept annoying her, together with her partner Bob or Bip. Then, they were given a talking Meowth.

Sighing, she had reminded herself repeatedly that Jessie, the recruit, was not an assassin. There was no Red Rose there.

James was a little overconfident and haughty at first, but slowly they warmed up to each other. Meowth was annoying and presumptuous, but slowly became less of a burden and more of a help.

Then they were sent on missions together. Mondo was given to them as an assistant.

Eventually, they caught a couple of Pokemon (or received them as gifts). She had a Ekans, and James had a Koffing, both eventually evolving into a Arbak and a Wheezing. Then they captured a few others.

Sometimes, they were called back to headquarters, where James and Meowth slept in one room while she went on her assassinations.

* * *

"Sir, why am I not allowed to use my true skills? If I did, that Pikachu would already be in your hands, along with countless other Pokemon that we have nearly captured."

"This is your public cover, the Red Team. I am not actually interested in those Pokemon. I can easily capture countless in the wild. There's no need to steal any from trainers."

"... Sir?"

"The Red Team was created just to keep the Red Rose occupied and happy. Anytime the Red Rose is no longer satisfied with the Red Team, we can change the team. Do you wish to change your teammates?"

"... No sir, I'm fine."

* * *

"I find it strange, Jessie."

"Hmm...?"

"We have failed nearly every mission we've been sent on, why are we not fired yet?"

"... The boss is merciful, I guess."

"That might be so..."

* * *

One day, while chasing after the twerps across a mountain's edge, getting thundershock-ed and sliced with razor leaves, their balloon tore and they blasted off yet again. Only this time, the connection between the balloon and the basket broke, and they began free-falling from several miles up, toward a lovely bed of sharp rocks.

"They're falling!"

"There are sharp spikes down there, they'll die!"

Even the twerps were worried. She almost felt surprised, then remembered that yes, they were the good guys, and good guys should always try to prevent bad guys from dying.

"Jessie! Meowth!" James shouted, wide-eyed and panicking. Meowth was no better, swinging his arms around wildly.

She didn't stop to think. Grabbing hold of her two teammates under one arm, she jumped from the basket, kicking off.

"Arbak!" Her Pokemon materialised at her feet, and she stepped on its back, kicking off again.

"What's she doing-"

"That's her pokemon! How could she-"

"Return!" She pulled her Pokemon back into its pokeball, before it could fall onto the spikes.

"What is she-"

"Lickatongue!" She kicked off its back again, coming closer to the edge of the cliff. "Return!"

"She's-"

"I can't believe it-"

"Jessie, what are-?"

"Arbak!"

"Return!"

"Lickatongue!"

"Return!"

Eventually, after several jumps, she and her team made it safely to the edge of the cliff. Meowth collapsed onto the ground, hugging the stones and sand. James just rushed to wrap his arms around her.

"Jessie! You saved us!" He squeezed tightly, and her face heated up slightly.

"Quiet, James! We nearly died and that's all you say?!" She shouted, panting, knocking him over his head.

"Hard, solid ground!" Meowth sighed in relief.

"... Well, at least we know how they have been surviving their 'blasting off's" The tallest and tanned twerp said, rubbing his chin.

"That was amazing!"

"Pika!"

"Don't praise them, they're Team Rocket!" The girl twerp shrieked.

In the meantime, James turned to Jessie, and they made eye contact. Smirking, they both nodded.

"Well, might as well... Prepare for trouble!"

"Make it double!"

"Seriously? You just got defeated..."

"Pika pika..."

"To protect the world from devastation!"

...

* * *

...

Along the line somewhere, they do fall in love.

Perhaps.

"Prepare for trouble!"

...

* * *

"Arbak, run away with those Ekans!"

"You too, Wheezing! Take them and leave! We'll hold him off!"

The Pokemon poacher laughed and summoned his Tyranitar. "Heh, you'll never defeat Tyranitar! I'll capture all of them, and your Pokemon too!"

"Taste my fury swipes!" Meowth screeched, rushing forward.

"Mine too!" Jessie dashed forward, James right behind her.

"And mine!"

* * *

They laid down on the ground, defeated. Jessie wanted to sigh.

The poacher glanced around, groaning to himself about lost merchandise, before glaring at the trio on the ground, and marching forward purposefully. He stopped beside James, and reached into his pocket. Jessie's eyes narrowed, then widened as the poacher swiftly pulled out a knife.

With the knife at James' throat, he glanced at Jessie. "Call your Pokemon back, woman, or I'll kill your partner."

Time froze.

James gasped, "Don't listen to him Jessie! We can't let him take our Pokemon!"

"Quiet!" There was a knife at his throat. He was trying to _kill_ James.

"He's bluffing, don't listen to him!"

"You think I'm bluffing?" The poacher smirked, pushing the knife into the flesh. A tiny trickle of blood dripped down James' neck. He whimpered, eyes squeezed shut.

There was _blood_. James was _hurt_.

"Come on, woman, call out to your-"

Jessie was suddenly in front of the poacher, wrapping her right hand around his neck, and her left around the wrist of the hand holding the knife, pulling it away from James.

"... You were going to kill him?" She asked, staring coldly at the man she was strangling. The poacher had dropped the knife and was clawing futilely at her hand that was slowly squeezing.

"Kuh-! Let go-!"

"You were going to kill him, weren't you?" She jerked her left hand, snapping the wrist she was holding.

"ARGH-!" She pulled the broken wrist, shoving it between the jaws of the man who started screaming.

"Oh no, shh shh... Don't scream." She cooed, pressing the broken wrist harshly into his mouth, gagging him.

"UMM! UM UMM!"

She held the wrist there, before sharply jerking it down. There was another loud snap as the poacher's jaw dislocated, hanging loosely.

"UM!"

"Shh... It'll be over soon. I promise."

She pressed her fingers into his neck, the sharp nails piercing his skin. Slowly, her fingers slipped into the neck, reaching around the windpipe. The moment her fingers had wrapped tightly around the windpipe, she pulled sharply, part of the windpipe snatched out of his neck, like a broken tube sticking out of its piping.

The poacher gurgled for a many painful seconds, before going quiet.

She stared at the cooling dead body.

"J-Jessie?"

 _James._

"James, are you alright?"

"J-Jessie?"

"James?"

"Y-you just- You- The man- You-"

Jessie blinked at him, slowly coming out of her hazy bloodlust. She took a step toward him. "James-"

"Eck-!" He squeaked, scampering backward. Meowth had fainted.

She stopped, bloodlust clearing as she registered that James was trying to _get away_ from her, that he was frightened of _her_.

"... James?" She tried taking a step forward, but he scampered back even further.

"Wha- How did you- How-"

She squeezed her eyes shut, her vision blurring, before opening them again, face wiped of emotion.

As she had suspected, there was no way he would be able to accept her. What was she thinking? He was nice and she was... not.

"I have scared you. I apologise for that. This will be the last time you have to see me. Return to headquarters."

"J-Jessie? Jessie!"

She turned on her heel, then disappeared, returning to headquarters. The boss will have to be informed, and she needed a new team.

Her eyes began watering up, and dripping down her cheeks.

To headquarters first. Perhaps Giovanni could give her an assignment to clear her head.

Love wasn't all that great anyway.

Even if it was.

* * *

 **Honestly, at this point I have ideas on how to continue, but not much motivation to write it out. This is just a tiny plot bunny. Who knows, it might change. This is meant to be a two-shot anyway. I'll just label it as complete, since there's a chance I might not continue.**

* * *

 **Reviews are like cookies**

 **They taste good,**

 **feel good,**

 **make you addicted to them**

 **and encourage you to work faster.**


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